FAQs

You can see every detail included in our house plans along with examples of each plan section by visiting our What’s in a Set of Plans page.

We strive to make it as easy as possible to search, find and buy the house plan that turns into your dream home. Before you start your search with us, there are many things to consider, such as neighborhood, size of family, square footage, budget, and more. It’s always best to write down what’s necessary and practical to build the perfect home. We recommend visiting our helpful Buyer’s Guide page to get started on your house plan buying journey. Once you determine what you’re looking for, use our features & search filters to narrow down which plans fit your preferences.

We calculate square footage by measuring living space from stud to stud of the exterior framing. This does not include decks, porches, storage, basements, fireplaces, attics, and garages.

We recommend you talk to a local or your desired builder to get an accurate estimate. We do not give quotes on the cost of the build, so it’s best to work with a builder who knows the specific area and experience building homes similar to your plan. We do provide building materials in the plans that help with receiving an accurate estimate, but please note that costs will vary based on your finishes and any added options.

You should keep one full set of your plan documents for your personal records. In order to build your home, you will need extra sets for your builders and contractors for them to accurately bid on your home. Plus, you need copies for your lending institution and local building department. You can visit your local building department’s website to find out how many copies are needed. We do recommend buying an electronic PDF of your plans because you can print multiple copies. Most builders, contractors, and banks use PDF format.

Our plans have the information needed to build a home, but each county has different requirements to approve and issue your building permit. We highly recommend consulting with your local building official to verify it is ready to submit for your building permit.

We design each plan to meet national building standards, but don’t take into account your specific county and state building codes and regulations. We highly recommend you review your plans with a local structural/truss engineer to ensure your plans comply with all local requirements and ordinances.

When you start shopping for your house plan, it’s important to inquire if you need to buy your lot first. Each municipality has its own setback requirements, which is how far your house must be from the street or place that needs protection. Specific neighborhoods have their own requirements to meet too. If you already know the neighborhood you want to live in or the house plan you want to buy, it’s smart to buy the house lot first. If you do find a house plan that doesn’t quite match your desired lot, you can always modify your plan with us to meet the necessary requirements.

After you purchase your house plan from us, there are multiple steps you need to complete before your local planning commission approves the construction of your new home.

This includes showing your plans to your contractor and subcontractors. For example, the plumbing contractor needs to create your plumbing plan by drawing in plumbing lines based on the position of your home on the lot and water supply location. The HVAC contractor will draw the duct lines for your home to ensure you have the proper equipment for the size and climate of your home.

We also recommend giving your plans to a local structural and truss engineer to review and ensure your plans meet all local building codes. Depending on your geographic location, building code requirements will vary. One more thing to consider is to check if your municipality requires a licensed Architect to stamp and seal the plans.

Plan options are additional add-ons that you can make to your plan. To learn more about what this includes, please visit our Plan Options page. Please note that plan options are different from requesting modifications to your plan.

Also known as a reverse house plan, when a house plan “flipped” from its original layout. The right side of the original plan now moves to the left side and vice versa. To learn more, please visit our Plan Options page.

We provide an electronic PDF file of your plan or we can mail a hard copy. Please note that a purchased plan is only licensed for one build.

When you purchase a PDF file of a plan from us it is licensed for one build, so you can make as many copies as you like for that build. It is typically easiest for you to get copies of your plans from a local copy shop, but we can print and ship to you for an added fee.

Yes, all of our plans can be modified. We offer an easy way to make both small and large changes to your plan. Visit our Modify My Plan page to find out more information and get started modifying your plan.

Common modifications we see are the following:

• Adding or removing windows
• Increasing the size of your garage from a 2 to 3 cars
• Adjusting for kitchen cabinets and appliances
• Extending or removing interior walls
• Changing the height of the ceiling
• Changes to the foundation type
• Changes to the exterior wall surface (ex. Brick, vinyl siding, stucco)
• Changes to the exterior wall framing (ex. 2×4 to 2×6)
• Changes to the garage entry location
• Adding or eliminating an interior room (this impacts the entire plan – floor plan, elevation, roof, foundation need to be adjusted)
• Increasing the square footage

This will vary depending on how complex your changes are. To find out more information, visit our Modify My Plan page.

Absolutely. Our “wishlist” feature allows you to save your favorite plans from our catalog into an organized, personalized account. To use this feature, create an account or login if you have an account already.

As you search our collection of plans, you can click the heart icon at the top right of the image. Every time you login to your account, you’ll be able to see your favorites by clicking “My Favorites.” To view or buy plans from your Wishlist, click the plan, and it will take you to its original plan page where you can add it to your cart and complete the purchasing process.

Of course. When you purchase your plan with us, your personal information is protected in our secure database using encryption software.

Upon purchase and delivery you have a complete product detailing all that is needed to construct our design, therefore we are unable to provide refunds.